


Tomoshibi

by 18Rox



Category: Bleach
Genre: Bleach - Freeform, F/M, Ichiruki, Tomoshibi, switch - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2011-02-15
Updated: 2011-02-15
Packaged: 2017-10-15 16:59:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/162924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/18Rox/pseuds/18Rox
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What if Rukia and Ichigo switched places? How much would the world of Bleach change if from the very beginning Rukia was the human and Ichigo was the Shinigami?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

A small, petite, teenage girl walked down the sidewalk of Karakura Town with a bag in her hand. She had medium length jet black hair that spiked out at end. A lone bang fell between her large violet eyes. She was still dressed in her gray school uniform. The girl growled under her breath as she looked down at the bag.

"Why does Byakuya make me get his stupid tea from the other side of town!? Does it really matter!?" she muttered angrily to herself as she thought about her brother-in-law’s strange tea obsession.

Her eyebrow raised as she stopped walking. It was like something was in her way but there was nothing there. The girl’s eye twitched in irritation.

"Shut the hell up!" she shouted at the air in front of her.

People that were walking by gave the girl strange looks. They whispered to their friends or family about the girl. It was a weird sight. It's not every day that you see people screaming at nothing.  
In her eyes, however, a spirit of a man floated in front of her, blocking her path. The spirit was right in her face, laughing and pointing at her.  
"You're so short! HAHAHA!!" he cried.

The girl growled even louder. “Well, you’re dead! I think being short is much better than being dead!!”

The spirit’s grin vanished from his face as he put his head down and floated away.

The girl chuckled before walking home. “Maybe I was a little harsh.”

This girl is Rukia Kuchiki. She is a high school student. She has been able to see spirits and ghosts for quite some time. Most of the time the spirits were nice and innocent, but like today, they could be rude and obnoxious.

She opened her front door and stepped inside.

"I'm ba-"

Hisana, Rukia's older sister, practically choked Rukia in a tight hug.

"Where were you!? I didn't know where you were!" Her sister shouted with concern.

Rukia sighed. "I went to the store to get Byakuya some tea. Didn't he tell you?"

Hisana let go of Rukia and turned to look at her husband. Hisana put her hands on her hips.

"Why didn't you tell me where you sent her?"

"The store wasn’t far from her school," Byakuya stated in a monotone voice.

Rukia rolled her eyes. “Psh! That place was definitely not close to my school.”

Byakuya looked back at his book. "You are too overprotective. She isn't a child anymore."

"Well, she is my only little sister and I won't let anything happen to her," Hisana said with way too much emotion.

"Over protective," Byakuya muttered.

"What was that!?"

Rukia sighed again. They were so irritating when they argued about stupid things. Hisana always got irritated over something stupid and then yell at Byakuya, who just refused to let her be right. After their parents died, Hisana had to take care of Rukia when she was just a teenager. Hisana was overwhelmed by the responsibility and gave Rukia to an orphanage. After she realized what she had done, it was too late. Rukia was already gone. Rukia was moved from foster home to foster home. Eventually, Rukia ended back up at another orphanage. Hisana, who had been searching for Rukia at every orphanage in the country, visited the orphanage Rukia was at with Byakuya. They found Rukia and Hisana managed to convince them that Rukia was her sister. Hisana had been very protective of her since then. The last thing she wanted was to lose her again. She acted more like a mother than a sister.

"I'm going to my room. Goodnight!"

Rukia climbed up the stairs and went into her room. She shut her door, which was covered with Chappy stickers. Her room had badly drawn pictures on the walls and Manga books everywhere. Rukia collapsed onto her bed, closed her eyes and sighed. Tomorrow was Monday and she really didn't want to go back to school.

Rukia turned from facing her window to facing the rest of the room. She opened her eyes and found herself staring at an orange-haired teenager that stood on her desk. She blinked a few times before realizing he was real.

"Hey, who are you!?" she demanded.

The teen acted like he didn't hear her. "It's close by. I can-"

Rukia jumped up on her desk and side-kicked the boy in his back. She ran over to the light and flicked it on to get a better look at this 'burglar'. The boy looked at Rukia with wide eyes, clearly confused.  
"Y-You…kicked me!" he said with confusion.

Rukia crossed her arms. "No shit...." she said sarcastically.

The teen clambered to his feet and stared down at the petite girl.

"Regular humans can't see me."

"Well why?" Rukia questioned.

The boy ruffled his hand through his brightly colored hair. "Because I am a spirit being. No one can see me but other spirits. You must be defective or something."

Rukia growled. "I'll show you defective!"

She threw a punch at the teen but he moved to the side, dodging it. When she tried to kick him, he jumped on her head and pushed her onto the ground. Rukia sat up on her knees and rubbed her head.

"Just tell me who you are! Normal people don't just walk through other people's walls!" Rukia yelled.

The teenager sighed and sat on the floor where he was eyelevel with Rukia. He stretched his legs out and yawned.

"Alright, I’ll tell you. I'm a Shinigami. I'm from a place called the Soul Society. It is where all the spirits go. I defeat monsters called Hollows and send spirits to the Soul Society," the boy explained.  
Rukia stared at the boy with a blank face. "How…do you expect me to believe that!?"

The 'Shinigami' growled. "Well it's true! I really don't care if you believe me or not. I was just being nice by telling you, dammit."

There was then a knock on Rukia's door. Both of their heads shot towards it.

"Hey, Rukia."

It was Byakuya.

"Yeah?"

The door opened slightly and Byakuya stuck his head into the room.

"Who are you taking to?"

Rukia quickly shook her head. "Oh, no one!"

"But I heard talki--" Byakuya turned his head so it looked like he was looking straight at the Shinigami. "Never mind."

Then the door shut. Rukia and the boy looked at each other.

"Could he see me?" the Shinigami questioned.

"I don't think so."

"But he looked right at me….Oh whatever…"

The boy climbed to his feet and looked back at Rukia, who just stood up. He then realized how short she really was. He chuckled.

Rukia's eyebrow rose. "Hey, what are you laughing about!?"

"Wow, you're really short!"

The petite girl growled and punched the Shinigami in his jaw. The boy rubbed his jaw and snarled at her.

"You little brat! Bakudo #1! Sai!"

Rukia's arms were forced behind her back and she fell to the floor. She struggled to get out of the invisible bonds.

The orange-haired shinigami looked at his hands and laughed. "Wow, I can't believe it worked."

Rukia frowned as she glared up at him. "What worked!?"

"It's called Kido, which is another ability that Shinigami have."

"So I guess you suck at it since you were so happy that you did it. This is probably the only Kido you can do."

Ichigo growled because he knew it was true. "Whatever, midget."

After a few minutes of silence, Rukia spoke again.

"Hey something's howling out there!"

The boy looked at her with confusion. "What?"

Then the Shinigami was able to hear the Hollow's thunderous howl.

"I hear it now! Something must have been blocking my senses…but what was it?"

Rukia heard her sister scream and her eyes widened. "Hey, let me go! My sister is in trouble!"

The boy just ignored her and ran out her door. Rukia scrambled to her feet with her arms still behind her back. She darted out of the bedroom and went down the stairs. Unfortunately, on her way down the stairs, she tripped and tumbled down the rest of them. She lifted her head and she saw a large monster holding her sister in its hand. The Shinigami was a few feet away from her.

"Let me out!!" Rukia shouted again.

"You'll just get in the way!"

Rukia clenched her fists and began to force herself out of the bonds. She pulled her arms apart as hard as she could. Her arms were slowly breaking the Kido spell.

The teen watched in awe. "No way!"

Rukia shouted and her arms were released completely. She ran toward the Hollow with a chair and slammed it on the side. The Hollow's other hand just smacked her into a wall.

"Stay out the way, idiot!" the Shinigami yelled and grabbed his large zanpaktou from his back.

Rukia climbed out of the rubble. She saw that the Hollow was still holding her sister. She got to her feet and stood right in front of the Hollow.

"Let go of my sister now!" she shouted.

The only response that the Hollow gave was an earsplitting wail. It dashed down towards her with its mouth wide open. Rukia's eyes shot in all directions. She couldn't run. It was too close. Accepting her fate, she closed her eyes and waited from the Hollow to make its final move. But the blow never came. Rukia opened her eyes and saw the orange-haired teen in front of her. He had his sword in the Hollow's teeth but the monster still managed to sink its teeth into the boy's shoulder. He snatched his sword out of the creature's mouth. He jumped out of the way of the Hollow's hand and lied against a fence. Rukia was shocked. He had saved her. She turned around and her sister was on the ground, unconscious.

"Do you want to save them?"

The Shinigami's voice regained Rukia's attention. She looked at him with wide eyes.

"What?"

He lifted up his sword so it was pointing straight at Rukia's chest.

"I will lend you my powers so you can defeat the Hollow. I am too hurt to fight. So, do you want to save your family?"

Rukia's mouth formed into a smile. "Yes I do, Shinigami."

"Just for the record, my name is Ichigo Kurosaki."

Rukia nodded. "I am Rukia Kuchiki."

The Shinigami's blade went into Rukia's chest. Smoke exploded around the area. Ichigo's black Shinigami outfit had changed to white. He looked at his hands.

"Hey what the hell!? I only wanted her to have a little of my power but she's taken almost all of it!"

Suddenly, the Hollow's hand was sliced off. It fell to the ground and vanished. The smoke faded away. Rukia stood smirking with her zanpaktou in one hand. She pointed it toward the Hollow.

"Your time is up!" she shouted.

She dashed toward it with her sword behind her. She yelled as she leaped into the air, her sword over her head. Rukia cut the Hollow in half. The two pieces fell over and dissolved into nothing.

 **朽木 ルキア/15歳 Kuchiki Rukia: 15 Years Old  
髪の色/黒色の Hair Color: Black  
目の色/スミレ Eyes: Violet  
職業/高校生 Occupation: High School Student and…  
**

 **死神  
"SOUL REAPER"**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The sun shined on her face. Her face scrunched into a scowl. Rukia stirred in her sleep. She grasped her pillow with her hand. Then she realized what  
she was touching. A pillow? Her pillow. Her eyes shot open. She gazed around the room. She was in her room…but how? She remembered seeing that  
orange-haired kid and a monster and….

"Hisana!" Rukia shouted with urgency.

She rushed downstairs only to see Hisana and Byakuya drinking tea and a huge hole in the wall. Rukia blinked. What happened? Hisana was hurt last night  
but now she looked fine.

"Hisana! What happened to your injuries!?"

Hisana and Byakuya stared at her, confused.

"What are you talking about, Rukia? What injuries?" Hisana asked.

"From last night when the…never mind. What happened to the house?"

"A trunk ran into it last night," Byakuya answered and took another sip of tea.

Rukia looked at them with a dumbstruck expression. _They don't remember anything! They thought it_  
 _  
was a truck. It doesn't even make sense! What truck makes that much damage! Our whole living room is gone! It was that stupid…what did he call  
it….Hollow? What happened to that boy? Ichigo….Did he do this?  
_

The girl shook her head and went to her room to change into her school outfit. She put on a gray skirt and a matching gray jacket. She looked at her  
clock. She was really late. Rukia went down the stairs and waved at her sister and brother-in-law.

"See you guys later!"

She walked down the sidewalk to her school, her hands on the straps of her backpack. Her school wasn’t too far away. It was just a ten minute walk.  
Rukia arrived at her high school and opened the door. She strolled down the hallway, deep in thought.

 _  
What happened last night? It is just a blur. I remember talking to Ichigo and a Hollow came. Ichigo saved me and…..and I killed the Hollow! I  
killed it! That’s right…that boy somehow gave me his powers. What happened to him? I wonder-  
_

“Kuchiki-san!”

Rukia was snapped out of her thoughts by a loud female voice. Orihime waved at Rukia with a wide grin. Tatsuki, Rukia’s childhood friend, waved too.  
Shortly after being reunited with her sister, Rukia starting taking karate, where she met Tatsuki. Since she didn’t have many friends at the time,  
Rukia was sad and lonely. She would cry whenever she got knocked down or lost. Tatsuki would usually beat her at sparring but she tried to cheer her up  
afterwards. They soon began to befriend each other. Eventually, Rukia wouldn’t cry at all, even if she did lose. Having Tatsuki as her friend gave  
Rukia much more confidence. Every since then, the two had been very good friends.

“Hey, Kuchiki-san, why are you so late?” Orihime questioned.

“Well I…had some things to do.”

“I heard a truck ran into your house, Rukia,” Tatsuki said, then chuckled. “Somehow I really don’t believe it.”

“Me either,” Rukia muttered.

XXX

The bell rang and students rushed to their classes.

Rukia sighed. “Time for class.”

The trio walked to their class and sat in their seats. Rukia’s seat was in the back by the window. Orihime seat was two seats in front of her and  
Tatsuki was in the desk beside Orihime.

“Hello.”

Rukia’s eyes widened when she heard that voice. She turned around and saw Ichigo dressed in the school uniform, smiling. Rukia jumped out of her seat  
and pointed her finger at him.

“You! What are you doing here!?”

Everyone stared at Rukia with confusion. The teacher pointed her ruler at her.

“Kuchiki-san! Please take your seat! Kurosaki-kun is our new transfer student here. So please take a seat next to Kuchiki-san.”

Rukia glared at Ichigo and sat back in her seat. Ichigo sat in the seat next to her and smirked. A half an hour later, class was over. As Ichigo walked  
out the door, he was grabbed by his shirt and taken outside. Rukia slammed him against the wall and growled at him.

“What are you doing here!?” she demanded.

Ichigo laughed. “I just came here to harass you! I had nothing else better to do since I’m stuck in this world.”

Rukia let go of him. “What do you mean you’re ‘stuck in this world’? Aren’t you supposed to go to that Soul Society?”

Ichigo shook his head. “I can’t. I don’t have enough power to go back there. Last night, you took almost all of my power. Now I have to stay in this  
stupid gigai.”

“A gigai?”

Ichigo ran his hand through his orange hair impatiently and pointed to his chest. “A gigai is a fake body Shinigami use when they stay in the real  
world for a long time. I’m using it to regain my powers so I can go back to the Soul Society.”

Rukia nodded. “So that’s why everyone could see you, right?”

“Yeah.”

Then a beeping sound came from Ichigo’s pocket. He quickly grabbed the phone-like object and flipped it open.

“There’s a Hollow nearby.”

Rukia crossed her arms. “Really? Why don’t you go kill it, _Shinigami._ ”

Ichigo reached in his other pocket and placed a black glove with a flaming skull on it over his hand.

“You’re the Shinigami now,” Ichigo stated then smirked.

He rushed toward Rukia. Rukia backed up a little.

“Hey what are you-“

Ichigo’s hand slammed on Rukia’s head and knocked her soul out of her body. Rukia looked at her hands and then at her lifeless body.

“What did you do to me!!??”

Ichigo turned around. “No time to explain! Follow me!”

The carrot top ran down the street. Rukia stared at her body.

“Wait, you can’t just leave my body here! People would think I’m dead!!”

She then realized Ichigo wasn’t listening. She sighed and followed him. They ran together down the sidewalk.

“So where is this Hollow at?” Rukia questioned.

Ichigo looked at his phone. “It’s in the park up ahead.”

The two stopped at the entrance of the park. A spider-shaped Hollow chased down a spirit of a small boy. The boy screamed as the Hollow closed in on  
him. He needed help. Rukia reached for her sword but Ichigo stopped her.

“If you help him, you have to promise to carry the duties of a Shinigami. You must help any soul that is in danger and get rid of all the Hollows.”  
Ichigo said with a serious face.

Rukia nodded. “I understand.”

Ichigo took his hand off her arm. The Hollow came closer towards them. Rukia unsheathed her sword and cut one of the Hollow’s legs off. The creature  
fell to its side. Rukia stepped right above its head. She sliced right through its mask. The Hollow faded away into ashes and vanished. Ichigo’s eyes  
widened.

“Wow, she’s fast.”

Rukia landed softly on the ground. She walked over to the shivering spirit. Ichigo also came over.

“Send him to the Soul Society. Just tap the end of your sword on his forehead. It’s called Konso,” he explained.

Rukia knelt so she was eyelevel with the boy.

“What...are you going to do?” he asked nervously.

The Substitute Shinigami smiled. “You’re going to go to a place called the Soul Society. You’ll be able to pass on and all these monsters will stop  
coming after you.”

Rukia tapped the end of her hilt on the boy’s forehead. An unusual, bright blue light surrounded the spirit. He slowly vanished into the earth. The  
light disappeared. Rukia stood up. Her work here was done. She sheathed her blade.

“Well, I have to get my body back.” She glared at Ichigo. “There’s no telling what those people at school could do.”

Ichigo chuckled. “Oh come on! What’s the worst that could happen?”

 **Back at school……**

“Oh my God,” both Ichigo and Rukia said.

There were tons of people surrounding the place where Rukia left her body. Medics from the ambulance placed her body on a stretcher.

“She’s not breathing!!” someone yelled.

“Oh no, Kuchiki-san’s dead!!” Orihime shouted.

Rukia punched Ichigo’s arm. “This is all your fault!”

Ichigo rubbed his arm. “Well sorry! How was I supposed to know how stupid your classmates were?”

“I told you!!”

“Oh….well….You should get back in your body.”

Rukia stared at him with irritation. “You think!?”

The small girl pushed her way through the crowd and finally got to her body. She sighed. How was she going to pull this off? She touched her body and  
her soul went back into her body. Rukia’s eyes snapped open. She sat up and looked around. Everyone was staring at her.

“Kuchiki-san!!?” Orihime yelled.

The Medics pushed Rukia back onto the bed. “You need rest!”

“No I’m fine!!”

“No you’re not!!”

Ichigo chuckled and grabbed a strange tube-like machine from his pocket. He pushed the button and a bright flash escaped from it. Everyone seemed to  
stop what they were doing.

“What were we doing?” someone asked.

Rukia hopped off the stretcher and she and Ichigo ran down far away from the crowd. When they were far enough, they stopped running. Ichigo put his  
hands in his pockets and looked over at Rukia.

“You know you’re pretty fast. Probably since you’re so small.”

Rukia growled. “Comment about my height one more time! I dare you!!”

Ichigo held up his hands in defense. “Come on! You know your short so—“

Rukia punched Ichigo in his gut.

“Stop hitting me!!”

“Maybe if you didn’t say so many stupid things then I wouldn’t have to hit you!”

Ichigo snorted and placed his hands back in his pockets. “Well, I’m going home.”

Rukia stopped and her eyebrow rose. “And where is that?”

The Shinigami turned around and smirked. “Do you really want to know?”

Rukia shrugged. “Well I guess not.”

“I’ll see you later.”

Ichigo and Rukia went their separate ways. Rukia opened her door and went inside, but she didn’t notice a tall figure run behind her and head for her  
window. Rukia went to her room and shut the door. She grabbed her favorite Manga and began reading it on her bed. An hour passed and there was a knock  
on her door.

“Come in.”

Byakuya stepped into the room with a confused expression on his face. “Hey, have you seen my sleeping clothes?”

Rukia sighed. “They’re called pajamas, Byakuya. And no, I haven’t seen them.”

“That’s strange. My favorite pants and shirts are missing too.”

“Yeah, that’s weird.”

“Alright, good night.”

Rukia shook her head. “Sometimes it feels like he’s living in another century.”

 _Beep…Beep……Beep…..Beep_

Rukia looked around her room. “What is that? Is that a cell phone?”

Suddenly, her closet door slid open and Ichigo was inside.

“Hey, Rukia!!”

Rukia jumped in surprise. “What are you doing in there!? And are those Byakuya’s pajamas!?”

Ichigo climbed out the closet and put on his glove. “No time to explain! Hollow!”

Rukia blinked. “Wait! Hollow?”

Ichigo lunged toward Rukia and smacked her out of her body. A Hollow’s hand smashed through the wall. The Hollow roared and stepped back. Rukia jumped  
out of the hole in the wall and landed in the street. Luckily, it was late and no one was out. The Hollow was pretty large. Rukia lunged toward it and  
sliced its arm off. As she went in for another attack, the Hollow’s arm regenerated and slapped her out of the air. Rukia plummeted to the ground,  
creating a large crater.

“Get up, Rukia!” Ichigo shouted from the side.

Rukia growled as she climbed to her feet. She wiped the blood from her mouth with her hand. She held her zanpaktou out in front of her. She had to  
think of a plan. The Hollow could regenerate so she had to go straight for the mask.

Ichigo watched as Rukia rushed back towards the Hollow. Since he was so locked in on the fight, he didn’t notice someone coming from the corner of his  
eye.

Tatsuki walked down the street with her hands in her pockets. She was on her way back home from the Dojo. She had stayed there longer since she wanted  
to practice a little more. She raised her head and saw Ichigo watching something, but when she looked in the direction he was watching, there was  
nothing there.

“Hey, you’re that new boy! What are you doing!?” Tatsuki questioned, stopping in front of him.

Ichigo turned his head and raised his eyebrow. He didn’t see her coming. Was he that interested in Rukia’s fight?

Just before Ichigo was going to answer, the Hollow threw Rukia into a building and caused it to collapse. Tatsuki fell onto the ground and Ichigo lost  
his balance as the ground shook.

“What was that!?” Tatsuki yelled.

Rukia dug herself out of the rubble. She thought she heard Tatsuki but she just shook her head. Why would Tatsuki be there? Rukia jumped out of the  
ruins and landed back in the street. The Hollow didn’t see her and went for someone else. Rukia turned her head saw who the Hollow was heading for….

“Tatsuki!!!” she screamed.

The Hollow’s hands grew into claws as it went closer to Tatsuki. Ichigo saw this and held his hand toward the Hollow.

“I hope this works,” he muttered, and then his hand began to glow. “Destructive Arts #33! _Sōkatsui!”_

When Ichigo fired the shot, it just turned into an explosion. Ichigo’s hair stood straight up and he was covered in dirt.

“Well that didn’t work.”

Tatsuki looked at Ichigo with a confused expression but she was completely unaware of the huge monster heading her way.

“Oof!” Tatsuki grunted as she felt like she had been tackled to the ground but no one was there.

She sat up, completely confused. “What the hell happened?”

Rukia chuckled at her friend and returned to the fight. She shouted a battle cry as she jumped up and aimed for the Hollow’s mask.

“Die, Hollow!!!”

Her zanpaktou sliced through the large Hollow’s mask. The beast vanished. Rukia landed on the destroyed street and sheathed her blade. Her eyes  
wandered over to Ichigo, who was still covered in dirt.

“What happened to you?”

Ichigo growled. “Nothing!”

“Hey do that little forget thing on Tatsuki so people won’t think that she went nuts.”

Ichigo nodded and pulled out the memory replacement machine. He pointed it at Tatsuki.

“Hey what are you-!?”

A bright flash escaped from the machine. Tatsuki’s facial expression had gone from confused to completely blank. Rukia and Ichigo ran away before she  
came out of her daze. They rushed back into Rukia’s room through the window. Rukia climbed back into her body and sat on the edge of her bed.

“So you’re staying here? In my closet?” she asked Ichigo, who was leaning against the closet door.

“Yep. I’m the only one who can get you out of your body so I have to be near you.”

Rukia frowned and pointed at him. “You better not do anything stupid while you’re here! You can’t let Hisana and Byakuya see you! How do you think  
they’re going to react when they find out some random boy was sleeping in my closet!?”

“But I’m not some random boy.”

“Well, they’ve never seen you before, so you’re a random boy!”

“Whatever.” Ichigo sighed and lied down on the small bed in the closet. He closed the door.

“Goodnight!”

“Goodnight” Rukia mumbled and went to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

“What is this ‘ice cream’?” Ichigo asked as Rukia handed him a strawberry ice cream cone. “Is it cream in ice form?”

Rukia sighed. “Just eat it.”

Ichigo licked the cone and smiled. “Hey this is kind of good. What favor is this?”

Rukia chuckled. “Strawberry. I thought it was perfect for you.”

Ichigo growled. “Whatever.”

“So Ichigo, tell me more about you. Like when you were in the Soul Society,” Rukia asked. She licked her cone.

The two sat on a nearby bench. “Well first, me and my cousin, Kenji, died in a car crash. Most souls aren’t able to remember their past life but I’m  
able to. After we died, I found out that my father and my sisters had died in a fire. Me and Kenji though didn’t get reunited with them since we were  
sent to different parts of Rukongai. We were in one of the worst parts of Rukongai, 78th District.”

Rukia added, “That sucks. Basically your whole family died.”

“Yeah I know. It wasn’t that bad since we all knew we would see each other again anyway. So, when we were in Rukongai, we found other kids who were  
like us; kids who were alone. One of those kids is now my best friend, Renji. As we grew up, Kenji, Renji, and I realized we had pretty strong  
spiritual power. So we decided that we were going to go to the Shinigami Academy and become Shinigami. Actually, Kenji and Renji were the ones who  
wanted to be Shinigami. I just was going because they were going.”

“They have a Shinigami Academy? Wow,” Rukia interjected.

Ichigo continued, “When we got to the Academy, it turned out that my spiritual power was a lot higher than I thought and I was placed in the advanced  
class. Kenji and Renji were placed in the regular class. I quickly learned how to control my power and I couldn’t hang out with Kenji as much because I  
was in a higher class, so we drifted apart. Renji understood and hung out with me whenever we could. Just before I graduated, I was offered a higher  
ranking position in the Gotei 13, which was very rare for a Shinigami graduate.”

“So what happened? Did you accept?” Rukia questioned.

Ichigo shook his head. “I couldn’t. It wasn’t my dream. It was Kenji’s. Even though I declined the offer, Kenji was still angry at me for being a  
higher level than him. I tried everything to try to make him forgive me, but nothing worked. When we were both accepted into the Gotei 13, I declined  
every promotion so Kenji would be a higher rank than me, but it still didn’t matter. He knew how strong I was, so the rank didn’t matter. He’s a  
captain now and I’m still unseated.”

“Your cousin needs to get over it! I mean, you gave up a lot for him to be where he is. You guys are family,” Rukia added.

“Well he’s an asshole. I doubt we’ll ever get along. The only positive thing that came out of being a Shinigami was that I finally got reunited with my  
family. It turned out that they all became Shinigami too.”

 _“You met me.”_  
Rukia thought but didn’t say it. She then smiled. “That’s good.”

They both finished their ice cream cones and decided to head home. ~~~~

XXX ~~~~

"Kuchiki-san! Kurosaki-kun! You two are late!" the teacher yelled as Rukia and Ichigo walked into the classroom.

"I wouldn't be late if carrot top hadn't taken so long to tie his tie," Rukia muttered to Ichigo.

Ichigo growled. "Shut up, midget."

They walked to their seats and class resumed. When that class was over, lunch was next. Ichigo still wasn't used to the lunch tray thing, so Rukia had  
to make two lunches instead of one.

"So, Rukia, how do you open this?" Ichigo asked as he examined the juice box.

Rukia sighed and stuck the plastic straw through the hole. "Here. Done. You really are clueless about the living world, aren't you? I thought you were  
able to remember your past life?"

Ichigo sipped the juice. "Actually, I only remember my death. Nothing else."

"Wow, that's useful."

"Kuchiki-san!" Orihime and Tasaki sat at the table.

"What's up, Tasaki! Hey Inoue!" Rukia greeted.

"Oh, hello, Kurosaki-kun." Orihime said, blushing slightly.

Ichigo waved but never looked up from his lunchbox. He was fascinated by it. "Hey."

Rukia snatched the lunchbox from him. "Sometimes you act so retarded! It's a lunchbox!"

The two other girls stared at the two with wide eyes.

"Are you two going out or something?" Tasaki questioned.

Both Ichigo and Rukia looked at her. "NO!!!"

Tasaki waved her hands. "Hey, sorry! You two are just acting weird!"

"So Kurosaki-kun, where are you from?" Orihime asked.

Ichigo stopped to think. "I’m from…Shibuya…”

“Really? Did you like it there?”

“Ah……yeah….” Ichigo responded with uncertainty.

Suddenly, Ichigo's phone started beeping and he was happy it did before they asked anymore questions. Rukia and Ichigo looked at each other.

"I…gotta go!!" Rukia yelled and rushed out of the lunch room with Ichigo following her.

Orihime and Tasaki blinked. "That was weird."

Ichigo slammed his glove against Rukia's chest and her Shinigami form flew out.

"Wow, that's hard to get used to," Rukia said as they ran down the street.

"There it is!" Ichigo shouted as the Hollow came into view.

Rukia unsheathed her zanpaktou and flash-stepped in front of the Hollow. This Hollow was somewhat smarter than the others since it saw Rukia's attack  
coming. Rukia slashed at the Hollow's arm, and then went straight for the mask. Her zanpaktou didn't go all the way through the mask, causing a piece  
of the mask to fly off.

Rukia was shocked to see a human face staring back at her. The Hollow screamed and fled through the _Garganta._

The Shinigami landed back on the ground and fell to her knees. The Hollows were humans. She had been killing humans.

"Rukia! What's wrong?" Ichigo ran over to her.

Rukia dropped her sword and grabbed Ichigo by his collar. "Why didn't you tell me that Hollows were humans!!? I've been killing humans for you!!"

Ichigo sighed. "They're not human beings anymore, Rukia. They are monsters. Souls that hold on to feelings or resentment refuse _Konso_ and linger  
around the world alone. Eventually, they turn into Hollows themselves or other Hollows devour them. You don't really 'kill' a Hollow. You’re actually  
cleansing it from its sins committed as a Hollow so they will be able to go to the Soul Society."

Rukia let go of him. "I guess if you put it like that, it doesn't sound too bad."

Ichigo chuckled. "We're Shinigami, Death Gods. You didn't think it was going to be all happy, did you?"

Rukia picked up her sword and sheathed it. "Come on. Let's go."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"So what do we do in 'Gym Class’?” Ichigo asked Rukia as they stood in line for attendance.

Rukia crossed her arms. “We play sports and stuff in Gym. I think you will like it."

"Alright, class!" the gym teacher shouted. "Today we're playing dodge ball! Everyone get into their teams!"

Luckily, Ichigo and Rukia happened to be on the same team. The two teams went to the opposite sides of the gym.

"Dodge ball, huh? I guess you dodge the ball, right?" Ichigo asked.

"Yeah, pretty much. You throw it at other people too," Rukia answered. "Just don't kill anybody."

Ichigo smirked. "I'll try."

"Ready? Go!!!"

Everyone ran to the middle where all the dodge balls were. Ichigo grabbed a ball and threw it. The ball ended up knocking someone in the head. He  
pretty much got everyone out.

"Wow, this is fun!" Ichigo exclaimed.

"At least you found something that you're good at," Rukia commented.

All the students on the other team were sent to the nurse's office from suffering a massive headache because of Ichigo's killer dodge balls.

"Wow, Kurosaki!" The gym teacher smacked Ichigo on his back. "You sure have an arm! Why don't you join the football team! You'll be a great  
quarterback!"

Ichigo moved away from the teacher. "Actually, I'm not really into sports."

The teacher pulled him closer. "Come by the football stadium after school and we'll see what you got."

Ichigo sighed and walked over to Rukia, who was smiling. "So, are you going?"

"Hell no! I don't even know what 'football' is!" Ichigo yelled.

Rukia laughed. "I think you should go. I want to see you make a fool out of yourself."

"Shut up, midget."

 **After School…..**

"Kurosaki!! Get out here!!" The coach shouted.

Ichigo struggled to put the shoulder pads on. "Stupid Rukia…Making me do this shit…"

He finally put the pads on and slipped the jersey over it. Then there was one last thing the coach gave him.

Ichigo stared at the cup. "I wonder where this goes…"

"Come on, Kurosaki!!!"

Ichigo shrugged and threw the cup on the floor. "Coming!!!"

Rukia laughed when she saw Ichigo running out of the locker room with the football uniform on. He was about to embarrass the shit out of himself. She  
pulled her camera from her backpack and started recording.

"Alright, Kurosaki! Let's see what you got!" The coach handed Ichigo the football and everyone stared at him.

"Oh-oh," he muttered as everyone dashed towards him. Ichigo ran as fast as he could, trying to get away from the other football players. He screamed as  
they got closer to him and ran faster.

Rukia was cracking up in the stands. "Oh my god!! This is totally going on YouTube!"

All the players tackled Ichigo to the ground. They were all piled up on top of him.

"Get off of me!!!!!" A muffled yell came from the pile.

The players got off of Ichigo, who was lying on the ground in pain. He groaned. "I think I know where that thing goes now…"

Ichigo crawled off the field and took his helmet off. "I'm in so much pain…."

Rukia walked down from the bleachers and stood next to him. "That was hilarious!"

"Not for me," Ichigo moaned, holding his crotch.

"Get your ass up! We have things to do!" Rukia growled and grabbed Ichigo by his arm. Of course, she wasn't able to pull him to his feet because of her  
size.

 _-RAWR!!!-_

Rukia and Ichigo turned in the direction of the roar. A Huge Hollow appeared out of nowhere.

"I smell a Soul Reaper!!" it howled.

"Ichigo, where's the glove!!?" Rukia yelled as the Hollow came closer.

Ichigo stood up. "I left it in the locker room!"

The Hollow's fist came towards them and they jumped out of the way.

"Then go get it!!!" Rukia shouted. "I'll try to hold it off!"

Ichigo nodded then rushed to the locker room.

"Maybe I left it in this locker…" He opened the locker and the glove was nowhere to be found. "This is going to take awhile."

The people on the field screamed when an unknown force destroyed the bleachers. Rukia ran down the field to dodge the Hollow's attacks.

"Shit! Hurry up, Ichigo!!" she yelled as the Hollow almost hit her.

The Hollow suddenly disappeared. Rukia nervously looked around the field.

"Where did it go?"

Suddenly, the Hollow appeared right behind her with its claws heading straight for her. Rukia gasped and shielded herself.

 _-ARG!!-_

Rukia opened her eyes and saw the Hollow being pierced with strange blue arrows. Then it vanished.

"What do you think you're doing, Shinigami!"

The girl looked at the direction of the voice and saw a black-haired boy about her age standing in front of her. The boy wore the regular school  
uniform and a pair of glasses.

"Who are you? How did you know I was a Shinigami?" Rukia questioned.

The boy pushed up his glasses. "My name is Uryu Ishida. I am the last Quincy."

Rukia raised her eyebrow. "Quincy?"

Ichigo finally came out of the locker room, wearing his school uniform. "I haven't heard that word in a while."

“What took you so damn long!!? Did you seriously get changed while I was getting chased by a damn hollow!!?” Rukia yelled at him, clearly angry.

Ichigo tried not to laugh. “Ah….”

Rukia rolled her eyes. “Forget. What is a Quincy?”

"They're like Shinigami in a way. Except they’re humans and use bows instead of zanpaktou," Ichigo explained. "Shinigami purify Hollows, so the soul is  
still intact. But Quincy kill Hollows, which destroy the soul entirely. About 200 years ago, a war against the Shinigami and the Quincy broke out. Most  
of the Quincy population was killed."

Uryu grabbed a capsule from his pocket. "Now I will prove that Quincy are superior!"

"What is that?" Rukia asked.

"Bait," Uryu said. "When I crush this, Hollows will start coming to us."

"WHAT!? Are you crazy!!?" both Rukia and Ichigo yelled.

Uryu crushed the capsule then smirked. "Get ready, Shinigami…"

Not long after, hollows began to appear over their heads.

" Ichigo, use the glove!!" Rukia ordered. Ichigo slammed his gloved hand into Rukia's chest, sending her soul out of her body.

Rukia sliced the Hollows that were coming towards her. Once she killed one, more would come. It was never ending!

"You are crazy!!" Rukia shouted at the Quincy, who was battling his own fair share of hollows.

"What? You can't take the pressure?" Uryu taunted.

In seconds, Rukia was surrounded by a group of Hollows. She growled angrily and _reiatsu_ began to pour out of her. She jumped up and stabbed the  
Hollows in their masks.

Suddenly, hundreds of Hollows emerged from above them. Both Rukia and Uryu looked in horror as the monsters flew towards them.

Rukia pointed at Uryu. "Look what you did, you idiot!!"

"You were the one who was leaking _reiatsu_!" Uryu yelled back.

"And what do you mean by that!?"

"Rukia! Watch out!" Ichigo warned as a Hollow appeared behind Rukia.

Uryu killed the Hollow with his arrows, saving Rukia. "As much as I hate you, Shinigami, we have to work together to defeat all of them."

Rukia nodded and the two began to fight off the Hollows. As the number of Hollows started to go down, Ichigo saw a huge rip in the sky.

He gasped when a gigantic Hollow tore open the rip. "Menos Grande!"

"Oi!! Rukia!!" Ichigo shouted. "Turn around!!!!"

Rukia and Uryu stopped fighting and looked into the sky.

"That…bait…couldn't have caused…this?" Uryu muttered as the Meno Grande escaped from the rip.

"What is that…Ichigo?" Rukia asked with wide eyes.

Ichigo walked towards them. "A Menos Grande. It's….stronger than the normal Hollows you face."

"What are we going to do about it!? I mean we can't just stand here!" Rukia yelled.

The Menos Grande charged a _cero._ Rukia gripped her zanpaktou tightly and rushed toward the giant.

"Rukia! What are you doing!?" Ichigo shouted.

When the Menos Grande released the _cero_ , she held her sword above her head to stop the beam. The _cero_ slammed into her blade. Rukia  
struggled to keep the sword up.

She began to slide backwards. “No…No!”

Rukia saw another pair of hands grip her sword. She turned her head and saw Ichigo standing right next to her.

He gave her a reassuring smile. “Come on, Rukia. We have to push it back.”

Rukia nodded then determination filled her face. “Alright.”

The two yelled, putting all of their strength into pushing the _cero_. There was so much pressure. Soon enough, they slowly began to push the _cero_ back.

"They’re doing it…" Uryu whispered.

“Use all your strength!!” Ichigo shouted.

They both let out a battle cry and reflected the _cero_ off of Rukia’s sword, making the beam go straight through the Menos Grande's head. The  
Hollow roared before fading away. The remaining Hollows went back into the rips in the sky and disappeared.

Rukia collapsed to the ground while Ichigo just fell to his knees.

"Rukia….are….you….alright?" Ichigo questioned through his breathes.

"Yeah…I'm okay…just a little tired..." she muttered.

Ichigo climbed to his feet and helped Rukia up. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she leaned against him.

"Kuchiki-san, Kurosaki-san?"

Their eyes looked at him.

"I still don't like Shinigami but…it's a truce," Uryu said with a smile.

Ichigo smirked. “Yeah, I’m not a Quincy fan either but I guess I’ll deal with you.”

Rukia rolled her eyes at Ichigo. “Well alright. It’s a truce.”

“Now let’s go, Rukia.” Ichigo picked her up and held her in his arms.

For some reason, Rukia didn’t complain. Being in his arms almost made her feel safe. Or maybe she was just too tired to care.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"Rukia!" Byakuya said loudly as he pounded on Rukia's door. "Breakfast is ready!"

The small girl moaned and put the pillow over her head. The fight with the Hollows yesterday really had taken a toll on her body.

"Rukia…" the man spoke again. “Get up. You have to go to school. And Hisana keeps complaining about how you don't spend time with her anymore. You  
haven't eaten breakfast with us in a few days…"

Rukia opened her eyes. "Fine. I'll be right there."

When she heard Byakuya walk away, she looked at her closet. "Good morning, Ichigo."

Ichigo slid the door open and yawned. "Hey."

Rukia stood up and took her school uniform out of her drawer. She put it on her bed then turned to Ichigo. "Um…Ichigo…there's something I want to talk  
to you about…"

"What is it?"

"Well yesterday….Uryu said that I was 'leaking' _reiatsu_. What does that mean?" Rukia asked.

Ichigo sighed. "You are having the same problem I had. I had so much spirit power that it was hard to control. So _reiatsu_ was constantly leaking  
out from my body. Hollows were attracted to me. I was easy to track. You are the same. I guess it’s because I gave you my powers. That's why Uryu knew  
you were a Shinigami. He could sense you."

Rukia smiled. "Sometimes you can sound really smart."

"What? I am smart, you midge-"

The girl closed the closet door shut then locked it. Why was there a lock on the closet door? Rukia had no idea.

“I’m getting dressed. No peaking!” Rukia said, teasing him, her voice muffled by the closed door.

Ichigo crossed his arms with his eyes closed. “Psh! Yeah right! Like I would ever want see you with no clothes on.”

Then his curiosity started to get to him. _“Hmm…I wonder if…NO! Why am I thinking about this!?”_

He sat in the closet, staring at the door. “Hey! Rukia! Are you done yet?”

When he didn’t hear a reply, I decided to try and open the door. Ichigo managed to get the door open slightly. He looked through the crack with one eye  
and blushed when he saw Rukia still dressing. He silently closed the crack shut and tried to get the image out of his head. But it just wouldn't go  
away.

" _For a midget…She sure had some curves…AHH!!! NO! I’m not a PERVERT!!’_

Then the closet door opened and a fully dressed Rukia faced him. "Meet me outside, ok? Hey are you alright? You look really red."

Ichigo grinned, nervously. "Yeah, I'm fine!"

"Whatever," Rukia said and went downstairs.

Hisana had made a regular breakfast. You know…pancakes, bacon, sausage, hash browns, eggs, waffles. Rukia sat down at the table. There was already a  
plate ready for her. There was a huge pancake with eggs as eyes and bacon as the mouth. Some sausages and hash browns were on the side.

"Um…Thanks, Hisana," Rukia spoke.

Hisana smiled. "No problem! You need to eat breakfast more often! You're a growing girl!"

Byakuya sighed as he read his newspaper. "So how's school, Rukia?"

Rukia shrugged. "Well, it's ok. Same old.”

Rukia quickly ate her breakfast and fixed a plate for Ichigo. She tried to sneak out without Hisana seeing her, but that plan failed.

"Hey, where are you going with that?"

Rukia smiled as she started to think of something. "Um…Well I just wanted to eat some more on my way there. Like you said, a growing girl has to eat!"

Hisana didn't find this suspicious at all. But Byakuya, on the other hand, did.

As Rukia walked out the door, she could felt Byakuya's cold stare. Ichigo was sitting on a nearby bench, waiting for her.

"Here's breakfast." Rukia handed him the plate.

"Awesome!" Ichigo demolished the food.

Rukia sighed. "You ready now?"

Ichigo stood up and grabbed his backpack. "Yeah."

As they walked, Rukia began to think about the look Byakuya had given her when she had left. He looked really suspicious. Almost like he had seen right  
through her lie. But how would he have known about Ichigo? She remembered the first day she met Ichigo. Byakuya looked straight at him. Could he see  
spirits too? And where had he been when that Hollow attacked? It was too big of a coincidence.

"Yo! Rukia!" Ichigo said, waving his hand in front of Rukia's face. "You there?"

Rukia shook her thoughts away. "Yeah."

"We're about to be late for class again," Ichigo spoke calmly.

"What!? Come on!" Rukia shouted and dragged Ichigo into the school. Unfortunately, the bell rang right before they walked into the classroom.

"What do you know? Kuchiki-san and Kurosaki-kun are late again," the teacher announced.

Rukia and Ichigo ignored her and went to their seats.

"Ok, class! We're working in groups today!" the teacher explained and everyone cheered. "But I get to pick your groups!" Then everyone groaned.

The teacher looked over everyone. "Kuchiki-san, Inoue-san, Arisawa-san; you are in a group. Kurosaki-kun, Asano-kun, Sado-kun; you are in a group."

After the teacher announced the rest of the groups, everyone paired up with their classmates.

"Hey, Rukia! What's up!?" Tatsuki greeted her friend.

Rukia shrugged. "Nothing much. So what are we doing again?"

"We're mixing chemicals," Orihime answered with a smile.

"Oh." Rukia nodded. Then there was a long pause.

"Do you like the carrot top?" Tatsuki asked suddenly.

Rukia's eyes widened. “W-Who are you talking about?"

Tatsuki smirked. "You know! Ichigo Kurosaki."

"N-NO! I don't!" Rukia denied.

"I saw your face when the teacher told us our groups. You wanted to be with him!' Tatsuki said, trying to make Rukia admit that she liked him. "You  
guys are always together. You are even late to class everyday together! So what are you doing with him before class, huh? Sneaking off to the  
bathroom?"

Rukia's face was beet red. "T-T-Tatsuki!"

Orihime couldn't help but laugh at Rukia's face.

"I don't like Ichigo, ok!" Rukia finally managed to say.

Tatsuki smiled. "Whatever you say!"

With Ichigo, things were just as worse.

"So Ichigo, are you taking Kuchiki-san to the dance!?" Keigo asked, elbowing Ichigo in his side.

Ichigo pushed Keigo away from him. "What!? No!"

Keigo got back to his feet. "Everyone knows you like her. I mean, you guys are together all the time."

"So what? We're friends!" Ichigo responded.

"You guys even walk home together!" Keigo said.

Chad looked at Ichigo. "Just ignore him. My name is Chad Sado."

Ichigo nodded. "Yeah I’m Ichigo. So about this…dance...When is it?"

"Why? You decided to take Kuchiki-san!?" Keigo shouted, getting in his face again.

Ichigo punched him. "No! I was just wondering!!"

"It's next Friday at 7:00," Chad answered.

"Oh. Anyway, let's get this thing done," Ichigo said as they began to work on their assignment.

XXX

When school ended, Rukia and Ichigo walked home. As they walked in silence, Ichigo wondered about something. Was Rukia going to the dance? Usually  
girls go to those sorts of things.

"Hey, Rukia," Ichigo said.

Rukia looked up at him. "Yeah?"

"Are you…going to that dance?" he asked.

The midget was shocked. "What made you ask that?"

He shrugged. "Well, Keigo was talking about it. So are you and your friends going?"

"They're going but I'm not."

"What? Why not?"

Rukia held her head down. "I…can't dance."

Ichigo stared at her then laughed. "Seriously!?"

"Hey it's not funny!!" she yelled then punched him in the jaw.

"Ow! Before you punched me, I was going to offer to teach you how to dance but-"

Rukia stopped him. "What did you say?"

Ichigo smirked. "I am actually a really good dancer, so I can teach you so you can go to the dance."

"Really? You would do that?"

The carrot top then held up one finger. "One condition..."

Rukia sighed. "And what will that be?" She knew she was going to have to do some ridiculous thing for him.

"Take me out for…what do you call it…pizza?"

Rukia's jaw dropped. "That's it? You want me to take you out for pizza?"

Ichigo was dead serious. "Yeah. I don’t remember ever having it."

The small girl shrugged her shoulders. "Sure. As long as you teach me how to dance."

"Alright! Then it’s settled!" Ichigo said as they continued to walk home.

XXX

"1, 2, 3, and-ouch!" Ichigo yelled as Rukia stepped on his foot.

Ichigo had been trying to teach Rukia how to dance for about 2 hours now and there had been no success. They were practicing in the basement of Rukia's  
house. Luckily, Byakuya and Hisana weren't there.

"How could you step on my foot when you weren't even near me!?" Ichigo wondered then sighed. "Ok how about-"

"How did you learn how to dance anyway? You don't dance in the Soul Society, do you?" Rukia asked.

Ichigo shrugged. "I guess I was a good dancer when I was alive. Anyway, let's see if you can just do some simple stuff. Stand across from me and do  
exactly what I do."

Rukia did as she was told and Ichigo turned on the music. All Ichigo did was slowly move to the rhythm of the song.

"That's it?" Rukia questioned.

Ichigo growled. "You couldn't do any of the dances I showed you so this is it!"

Rukia sighed and moved back and forth but she wasn't on beat.

"You have to do it to the rhythm. Let me show you." Ichigo then walked behind her and placed his hands above her hips. Rukia blushed slightly at the  
gesture.

Then Ichigo began to guide her hips to the beat. After a few minutes, Ichigo let go and Rukia moved on her own.

"See, it's not so hard," Ichigo said, smiling slightly.

Rukia turned around to find herself face to face with the orange-haired Shinigami. She never noticed how calm and kind his brown eyes were. Or how  
gentle his face looked.

The two moved closer so they were only inches apart.

"Rukia! We're back!!!" Hisana's voice echoed, making the pair jump.

Rukia smiled. "Thank you, Ichigo."

"No problem. Now you have to take me out for pizza."

The girl laughed. "Alright. Alright."

XXX

"I can't do this! I'm going back home!" Rukia yelled as Ichigo pushed her into the school gym for the dance.

"You're not going back home!" Ichigo shouted back. "If I have to wear this suit then you have to be at this dance!"

Yes, Ichigo was in a suit. It was all black with a white undershirt. Rukia thought he looked pretty good in it, but she wasn't going to admit it.

Rukia was dressed in a simple red dress than went to her ankles. As simple as it was, she still looked beautiful.

"Kuchiki-san! You came!" Orihime yelled and ran to her from the punch bowl.

"Hey, Inoue!" Rukia greeted.

Orihime looked at Ichigo and blushed. "You brought Kurosaki-kun with you?"

Rukia waved her hands. "Hey, it's not like that! We're just friends!"

"You look um….good…Kurosaki-kun." Orihime complimented, blushing even more.

Ichigo looked confused. "Ah…thanks."

"Well, I'm going to find Tatsuki!" The orange-haired girl hurried to another part of the gym.

"Your friend is weird. She always blushes around me!" Ichigo stated, looking uncomfortable.

Rukia just laughed.

The gym was decorated pretty nicely. There were blue and white balloons all over the ceiling. There was a little disco ball and a DJ too.

"Yo, Ichigo!"

Ichigo sighed as he remembered the voice. "Keigo."

Keigo, Chad, and Mizuiro walked up to them.

"So you brought Rukia with you, huh? I knew you would." Keigo annoyed Ichigo.

Ichigo punched the boy in the face. "Shut up!"

"Hey, Kuchiki-san," Chad said in his deep voice.

"What's up, Sado-kun!? I haven't talked to you in awhile," Rukia replied to her friend.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. "You know him?"

Rukia nodded. "Yeah. Back in Junior High, people used to bully me because of my height."

"No? Really?" Ichigo chuckled.

The girl growled and stepped on his foot. "Anyway, Sado-kun defended me."

"Yeah," Chad responded.

Ichigo looked at the refreshment table. "Hey, Rukia, want some punch or something?"

Rukia shrugged. "Yeah, sure."

When Ichigo walked away, Tatsuki and Orihime came up to her.

"Hey, Rukia," Tatsuki said then smirked. "So where's your boyfriend?"

Rukia growled. "Ichigo's not my boyfriend. And he just went to get me some punch."

Tatsuki chuckled. "Get punch? Sounds like something a _boyfriend_ would do…"

"Shut the-"

"I'm back." Ichigo handed Rukia a cup of punch and took a sip of his own. "This isn't bad. I'm so used to drinking tea."

"Thanks."

Suddenly, a popular song boomed through the speakers. Everyone rushed to the dance floor…except Rukia and Ichigo.

"Come on, Rukia!" Ichigo shouted, trying to get her to dance. "Just remember the things I taught you!"

Rukia sighed. "Fine!"

Then the two went to the dance floor. Rukia was nervous. She didn't want to look like a fool in front of everybody.

"I'll help you out," Ichigo said and grabbed her hand.

Ichigo guided her around the floor. It didn't take long before she actually started to dance to the beat. The carrot top spun her around and Rukia  
danced on her own.

"You're doing great."

Rukia smiled. "I had a good teacher."

Then after one last spin, the song ended and a slow one began. Rukia and Ichigo looked at each other.

"You up for one more lesson?" Ichigo asked, as they got close.

The girl nodded and Ichigo placed her hands around his waist and he put his arms around hers. The two danced slowly together.

Rukia felt safe in his arms. His strong strawberry scent filled her with comfort. She put her head on his chest and could hear his gentle heartbeat.  
Ichigo smiled warmly down at her when she looked up at him. They stared into each other's eyes. They're faces grew closer and they kissed each other's  
lips softly.

"Look at that, Orihime." Tatsuki smiled, as they looked at the pair. "I knew they liked each other. I'm just glad Rukia finally found someone."

Orihime, on the other hand, wasn't too thrilled. Though Rukia was her friend, she also liked Ichigo. The girl then faked a smile. "Yeah, I'm happy for  
her too."

Ichigo and Rukia separated and blushed.

"Ichigo…"

The two continued to dance, oblivious to the world around them. It was peaceful. Too bad peace is always interrupted....

XXX

"Renji Abarai fuko-taicho, you are ordered to arrest Ichigo Kurosaki," Head-Captain Yamamoto ordered.

The red-head gasped. "What? Why?"

"Ichigo Kurosaki has committed a felony by giving his Shinigami powers to a human. He is to be arrested and taken back to the Soul Society to be  
executed. You are dismissed!"

Renji nodded and left the room. _"I was going to tell him about my promotion when he got back…..Damn Ichigo…"_


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

As usual, Rukia and Ichigo were walking to school together. But something was different. They walked pretty close so that their shoulders were almost  
touching. And there was a loving glow around them. Not only were their appearances different, but their attitudes as well. Both of them were happy.  
Ichigo wore a soft smile on his tanned face and Rukia had a grin on hers.

Ever since the dance, the two were inseparable. They did everything together. Shopping, eating, pretty much everything.

"Hey Ichigo!" Rukia exclaimed suddenly.

Ichigo raised his eyebrow. "Yeah? What's up?"

"How about we skip school today?" Ichigo hadn't expected her to say that. Why would 'innocent' little Rukia want to skip school?

"Why? Don't you care if Hisana finds out?" Ichigo questioned.

Rukia smiled then pulled out her phone. "I'll just call us in sick. They will never know."

Ichigo felt uneasy. "I don't know. I mean-"

Rukia gave him a puppy-dog face. "Please Ichigo…"

The orange-haired boy sighed. "Fine! Dammit!"

The girl smiled then dialed the number to their school. After a few rings, someone finally answered the phone.

" _Hello? Karakura High School."_

Rukia put on her best motherly voice. "Hi! This is Yuki Kurosaki! My son, Ichigo, isn't going to be in school today. He's caught that flu that's been  
going around."

" _Oh, ok. Thanks for calling, Ms. Kurosaki! I make sure I'll mark him absent!"_

"Ok, bye-bye!" Rukia hung up and chuckled. "Wow. That was a lot easier than I thought."

Ichigo shook his head. "Yuki?"

"Hey, that's the only name I could think of at the time." Rukia gave him the phone. "Now you have to call in for me."

“Alright. That shouldn’t be too hard.” Ichigo hit redial and the phone ran until the lady picked it up.

 _“Hi! Karakura High School!”_

Ichigo deepened his voice. “Ah Hi. This is…” He looked at Rukia and whispered, “Hey what’s that guy’s name?”

“What guy?”

“You know that guy with the long hair?”

Rukia blinked. “What the hell are you talking about?”

 _“Ah…sir?”_

“Hold on!” Ichigo yelled, “He wears those weird hair clip things!”

Rukia put her hands on her hips. “Hey they are not hair clips. They’re a symbol of his heritage. You know those took days to make.”

“I don’t give a fuck!!! Tell me his name!!!” Ichigo screamed.

 _“Are…you ok? Do I need to get you help?”_

“ARG! Fuck it!!!” Ichigo angrily slammed the phone shut.

“Oh by the way, his name is Byakuya.” Rukia snickered, grabbing the phone to call herself out.

“I hate you.” Ichigo muttered.

XXX

So what are we going to do now?"

Rukia grinned. "How about we get some ice cream!?"

Ichigo couldn't resist ice cream. After Rukia introduced it to him, he's loved it ever since.

"Ok," Ichigo agreed and they walked to the ice cream shop.

It was silent on their way to the shop, except for the sound of their shoes hitting the concrete. Ichigo glanced at Rukia and smirked.

 _‘Payback!’_  
He thought before grabbing Rukia and tossing her over his shoulder

“What are you doing, you idiot!! Let me down!!” Rukia yelled pounding on his back.

“Nope! Not until you say sorry for making me act like an idiot on the phone.”

“Believe me, I didn’t have to do anything. You’re always an idiot.” Rukia snorted.

Ichigo chuckled. “Well I guess you won’t be getting down anytime soon.”

“Grr…Whatever.”

After a few minutes, Rukia still remained on Ichigo’s shoulder.

“You sick of being up there yet?”

Rukia sighed. “Fine. I’msorryIchigo.”

“Say it slower.”

“I’m sorry Ichigo.” She apologized clearer.

“Good and just on time too.” Ichigo put Rukia down and she noticed they were at the ice cream store.

The carrot top ordered a double strawberry cone for himself and a double vanilla cone for Rukia. Ichigo handed Rukia the cone and began to eat his own.

They continued to walk and silence returned between the two.

" _Wow, I've been here a long time…"_ Ichigo pondered. _"About two months or so…"_ This thought then made Ichigo think about a serious  
problem. _"The Soul Society has probably found out about me by now.…They could be sending someone any day now…"_

The orange-haired Shinigami sighed. _"If they find Rukia…they'll kill her. I can't let that happen!"_

"Ichigo? What's wrong?" Rukia knocked him out of his thoughts.

Ichigo blinked, realizing that he had stopped walking. "Oh sorry…Ah what do you want to do now? I mean, we have like five hours to kill."

"Oh yeah! There's an amusement park not too far from here!" Rukia exclaimed.

Ichigo raised his eyebrow. "Amusement park?"

"You seriously are retarded…The Soul Society must be a pretty boring place," Rukia commented.

"Whatever!" Ichigo growled. "Which way is it?"

Rukia pointed in a direction and they began walking that way. The park wasn't too far away. As they got closer, Ichigo saw the large roller coasters.

"What are those?" He asked, clueless.

Rukia chucked. "Roller coasters, Ichigo."

He was still confused. "What do they do?"

"You'll find out when we get there," Rukia answered.

Ichigo snorted. "Wow, thanks for the explanation…"

After a few more minutes of walking, the two finally arrived at the amusement park. Ichigo gazed around the park, looking at all the rides.

"Hey, let's get on that!" the midget yelled, pointing to one of the highest roller coasters there.

Ichigo cringed as Rukia dragged him to the ride's line. It didn't take long before the two were at the front of the line. Ichigo looked up at the  
people who were going down the first hill. Their screams made Ichigo even more scared. The roller coaster car slowed to a stop then made its way into  
the station. Everyone who got off looked like they were going to puke.

"Come on, Ichigo! It's our turn!" Rukia grabbed his hand and led him to the car. They sat down in the little seats and strapped themselves in. When  
everyone was ready, the car began to move. It slowly made its way up the steep hill.

Ichigo looked off the side of the car and saw how high up they were. _"Why am I doing this!!?"_

"You ok?" Rukia questioned. "I mean, you look a little pale…"

The orange-haired boy nodded. "I'm fine."

Then the car made it to the top. Ichigo's eyes widened and he screamed as they flew down the hill. He unconsciously held Rukia's hand tightly. They  
went up a loop and the boy screamed even louder. All Rukia could do was laugh. They flew pat a camera then went down another hill before stopping in  
the station.

"Ah…Ichigo?"

Ichigo blinked then looked at Rukia, who was blushing slightly.

"You can let go of my hand now."

The shinigami gazed at his hand, which was interlocked with Rukia's. He blushed and let go. "Sorry…"

"Let's go see the picture!" Rukia said, and rushed over to the picture booth. She gazed up at all the pictures from the ride they were just on. She  
found the photo of her and Ichigo. "Number 1576, please."

The employee put the photo on the monitor. Rukia couldn't stop laughing from the picture. Ichigo's face was full of fear and his mouth was wide open  
because he was screaming at the time. His hair was straight up in the air. And Rukia was just laughing at him.

"Can I get that picture?" Rukia asked and paid for the photo. This was something she was going to remember forever.

Rukia walked back to Ichigo, who was sitting on the bench trying to recover from the ride. She handed him the picture. "This is for you."

Ichigo took the picture and chuckled to himself. "I look like an idiot…but thanks for getting it for me."

"No problem! Now what ride is next?"

Ichigo's face filled with horror. _"This is going to be a long day…"_

XXX

Rukia and Ichigo walked back home after being at the amusement park for a few hours. A giant Chappy doll was held tightly in Rukia's hands. Ichigo had  
won it for her at a booth.

"Ichigo?"

"Yeah?"

Rukia smiled at him. "I had a great time."

A small grin appeared on Ichigo's face. "Yeah, me too."

The two looked into each other's eyes then shortened the gap between them. Their lips touched together and they kissed softly. A few minutes later,  
they split apart.

“Come on, Ichigo. Let’s get home.” Rukia spoke then started walking.

Ichigo thought. _“Home? Was this my home now?”_

Rukia looked back at him then stopped. “Would you come on, idiot!”

Ichigo blinked then smiled. “Calm down, midget!”

 _“This is my home.”_

When they arrived home, Rukia went through the door while Ichigo snuck through her window.

"Hisana! I'm home!" Rukia shouted to her sister, who was cooking in the kitchen.

Her sister came out of the kitchen. "Hey! How was school?"

"Oh it was good. Same old." Rukia was a pretty good liar.

Byakuya looked at her from his position on the living room couch. "Are you hungry? Hisana's making rice dumplings…your favorite."

Rukia grinned. She couldn't deny rice dumplings. "Ok!”

While Rukia was eating dinner, Ichigo was quickly pacing around the room. “Arg! I knew I shouldn’t have drunk all that pop! Damn!”

He really needed to use the bathroom but he didn’t want Rukia’s family to see him. Who know’s what would happen if they saw him.

Ichigo got to a point where he couldn’t hold it. He opened the door silently and stuck his head out of the crack, making sure no one was there. He  
stepped out of the room and quietly walked down the hall. He managed to find the bathroom and opened the door. He cringed as it creaked. Luckily,  
Rukia’s family didn’t stop their conversation. He sighed in relief. He stepped into the bathroom and shut the door.

“I’ll be right back. I need to use the restroom.” Byakuya said, standing up from his chair and walking to the stairs.

Ichigo was completely oblivious to the danger that was currently heading towards him.

Byakuya stepped up the stairs.

Ichigo sighed and zipped up his pants. He put his hand on the toilet flusher but found himself chuckling at a picture sitting on top of the toilet.

“Ha. Rukia looks retarded.”

Byakuya made it to the top of the stairs.

Ichigo flushed the toilet, luckily it was fairly quiet. He walked to the sink and washed his hands. He gazed at the soap and rolled his eyes.

“Strawberry scented?”

Byakuya walked to the bathroom door and reached for the knob.

Ichigo opened the door to find himself staring right at Byakuya’s cold face. “Oh oh.”

The sound of yelling and slamming echoed through the house. Rukia and Hisana rushed upstairs. When she saw the sight, Rukia wanted to laugh and cry at  
the same time.

Byakuya’s foot was firmly placed on Ichigo’s head, which was smashed against the floor. He held his arm in an abnormal position that looked painful.

“AH! Get off of me!!!” Ichigo shouted.

“Is he a burglar?” Hisana questioned. “What kind of burglar uses the bathroom?”

Rukia shook her head. This was going to be hard to explain.

“Rukia!! Talk to him!!!” Ichigo yelled louder after Byakuya crushed his head even more.

Hisana looked at Rukia. “You mean you know him? Who is this man?”

“Ahhh….” Rukia had no idea what to say. _‘Damn you Ichigo!!!’_

“Answer me, Rukia!!”

Rukia groaned. “Alright! Alright! Let’s all go sit at the table and I’ll tell you. Byakuya, can you please let him go?”

Byakuya glared at Ichigo then released him from his gasp. Ichigo held his arm in pain. After Hisana and Byakuya went downstairs, Rukia kicked Ichigo in  
his side.

“You idiot!!!”

“Ow!! Stop it, midget!!”

“How could you get caught!?”

“I really had to pee! If you hadn’t gave me all that pop, this would’ve happened!”

“Oh don’t blame this on me!! You didn’t have to drink it!!!”

“Rukia!! Get down here and explain!!” Hisana shouted, ending the two’s argument.

Rukia glared at Ichigo from her end of the table. She gazed to her left, where Byakuya was sitting. Then to her right, where Hisana was sitting.

“Alright. This is Kurosaki Ichigo. He is a…friend from school.” Rukia started but was cut off.

“Why was he in our house!?” Hisana loudly asked.

“I’m getting to that. Ichigo didn’t have a place to stay because…his house was burned down. His whole family died too.”

Byakuya and Hisana looked at Ichigo. Ichigo’s eyes shot between them. He looked at Rukia, who mouthed: “Look sad.”

Ichigo’s shocked expression instantly turned to sorrow. “It’s true. I had nowhere to go.”

”So, I suggested he should come here. End of story.”

Hisana didn’t look pleased. “Well how long has he been here?”

“Ah….” Rukia lowered her voice. “Two…months.”

“TWO MONTHS!”

Rukia cringed.

“You had a boy living in your room for two months!?”

“Ah…yeah.”

Hisana was fuming. She was going to snap off any second now so Ichigo put on his act.

“Don’t blame Rukia.” They all look at him. “She was just trying to help me out. I don’t have a family anymore so they couldn’t help me. She was just  
trying to be a good friend. I will leave if you want. I don’t know where I’ll go though.” Ichigo smirked in his mind as Hisana’s angry face softened.

“I…I guess you can stay here. I can’t just put you out on the street.”

 _‘Kickass!!’_  
Ichigo thought.

“Well we have guest room that you can stay in.”

Ichigo shook his head. “That’s ok. I’ll just stay where I was in Rukia’s room.”

“I refuse to let you stay in the same room as Rukia!!” Byakuya finally spoke, his voice booming.

Ichigo was shocked. “Ah…ok. Whatever you say.”

“Then it’s settled! Welcome to the family Ichigo!” Hisana smiled.


End file.
